Post Graduate School Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi

Examination f o r Admission

to Ph.D. Programme 2011-2012

Discipline

: Agronomy
R o l l NO/
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Discipline Code : 07
Please Note:

(i)This question paper contains 12 pages. Please check whether all the pages are printed in this set. Report discrepancy, if any, immediately to the invigilator. (ii)There shall be NEGATIVE marking for WRONG answers in the Multiple Choice type questions (No. I to 130) which carry one mark each. For every wrong answer 0.25 mark will be deducted.
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PART I (General Agriculture) Multiple choice questions (No. 1 to 30). Choose the c o r r e c t answer (a, b, c or d) and' enter y o u r choice in t h e circle (by

shading with a pencil) on the OMR answer sheet a s p e r the instructions given on the a n s w e r sheet.
1. Which of the following crops have been approved for commercial cultivation in india? a) Bt cotton and Bt brinjal b) Bt cotton and Golden Rice c) Bt maize and Bt cotton d) Bt cotton only 2. This year (2010-11) the expected food grain qroduction in lndia is a) 212 million tonnes b) 220 million tonnes c) 235 million tonnes d) 250 million tonnes 3. The genome of which of the following crops is still not completely sequenced? a) Rice b) Soybean c) Sorghum d) Wheat 4. According to the Approach Paper to the 12" Five Year Plan, the basic objective of the 12'~ pian is a) Inclusive growth b) Sustainable growth c) .Faster, more inclusive and sustainable glowth d) lqclusive and sustainable growth

5. To address the problems of sustainable and holistic deveiopment of rainfed areas, including appropriate farming and livelihood system approaches, the Government of India has set up the a) National Rainfed Area Authority b) National Watershed Development Project for Rainfed Areas c) National Mission on Rainfed Areas d) Command Area Development and Water Management Authority

6. Which of the following sub-schemes are not covered under the Rashtriya Krlshi Vikas Yojana? a) Extending the Green Revolution to eastern india b) Development of 60,000 pulses and oilseeds villages in identified watersheds c) National Mission on Saffron d) National Mission on Bamboo
7. The minimum support price for the common variety of paddy announced by the Government of india for the year 2010-11 was a) t 1030 b) t 1000 ' c) t 980 d) t 950
8. According to the

a) b) c) d)

Human Development Report 2010 of the United Nations, India's rank in terms of the human deveiopment index is 119 134 169 182

Subject ;PhD- Agronomy -2011 9. Which of the following does not apply to SRI method of paddy cultivation? a) Reduced water application b) Reduced plant density c) Increased application of chemical fertilizers d) Reduced age of seedlings .>0:Which organic acid, often used as a preservative, occurs naturally in cranberries, prunes, cinnamon and cloves? a) Citric acld b) Benzoic acid c) Tartaric acld d) Lactic acid 11. Cotton belongs to the family a) Cruciferae b) Anacardiaceae c) Malvaceae d) Solanaceae 12. Photoperiodism is a) Bending of shoot towards source of light b) Effect of Iightldark durations on physiological processes c) Movement of chloroplast in cell in response to light d) Effect of light on chlorophyll synthesis 13. Ergot disease is caused by which pathogen on which host? a) Claviceps purpurea on rye b) Pucclnia recondita on wheat c) Drechlera sorokiniana on wheat d) Albugo candida on mustard 14. Rocks are the chief sources of parent materials over which soils are developed. Granite, an important rock, is classified as a) Igneous rock b) Metamorphic rock c) Sedimentary rock d) Hybrid rock 15. Which one of the following is a Kharif crop? a) Pearl millet b) Lentil c) Mustard d) Wheat
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17. Which of the following is commonly referred to as muriate of potash? a) potassium nitrate b) Potassium chloride c) Potassium sulphate d) Potassium silicate 18.lnbred lines that have same genetic constitution but differ only at one locus are called a) Multi llnes b) Monohybrid c) lsogenic lines d) Pure lines 19. For applying 100 kg of nitrogen, how much r urea would one yse? a) 45 kg I b) Illkg ,. c) 222 kg d) 333 kg 20. The devastating impact of plant disease on human suffering and survival was first realized by epidemic of a) Brown spot of rice in Bengal b) Late blight of potato in USA c) Late blight of potato In Europe dj Rust of wheat in India 21. The species of rice (Oryza) other than 0. sativa that is cultivated is a) 0. rufipugon b) 0. longisteminafa c) 0, glaberrima d) 0. nivara 22. a) b) c) d) 23. a) b) c) d) is

,
,

he enzyme responsible for the lxatlon of C 0 2in mesophyll cells of C-4 plants is Mallc enzyme Phosphoenol pyruvate carboxylase Phosphoenol pyruvate carboxyklnase RuBP carboxyiase
Which one of the following is a 'Vertisol"? Black cotton soil Red sandy loam soil Sandy loam sodic soil Submontane (Tarai) soil

16. The coefficient of variation calculated by the formula a) (Mean1S.D.) x 100 b) (S.D.iMean) x 100 c) S.D.IMean d) Mean1S.D.

(C.V.)

24.What is the most visible physical characteristic of cells in metaphase? a) Elongated chromosomes b) Nucleus visible but chromosomes not c) Fragile double stranded loose chromosomes d) Condensed paired chromosomes on the cell plate

Subject : PhD -Agronomy -2011

25. All weather phenomena like rain, fog and mist occur in a) Troposphere b) Mesosphere c) Ionosphere d) Ozonosphere 26. Which of the following elements is common to all proteins and nucleic acids? a) Sulphur b) Magnesium c) Nitrogen d) Phosphorous 27. a) b) c) Silt has intermediate characteristics between Sand and loam Clay and loam Loaq and gravel Sand and clay

33.A strain resulting from exposure to a particular environment is termed as a) Ecotype b) ldeotype c) Ecophone d) Ecotone 34. Which of the following tillage operations is particularly beneficial under dry farming situations? a) Planking b) Harrowing c) Dust mulching d) Zero tillage 35. The practice of cross ploughing the young 6 crop of rice f reduce weeds and vegetative growth of crop id called a) Puddling b) Beushening c) Khelua d) Taungya
36. Which of the following sub-specie of Zea

4)

28. Certified seed is produced from a) Nucleus seed b) Breeder seed c) Foundation seed d) Truthful seed

29. a) b) c) d)

Seedless banana is an Autotriploid Autotetraploid Allotriploid Ailotetrapioid

a) b) c) d)

mays is used as a popular snack food? indurata avarta ceretina amylacea

30. Which one of the following is used to test the goodness-of-fit of a distribution? a) Normal test b) t-test c) Chi-square test d) F-test

37. What percent of total fatty acid as erucic acid does canola have? a) -=0.15% b) ~ 1 . 0 0 % c) <2.00% d) <22 pmol
38. The staple length for long category of cotton
is

PART- I (Subject Paper) 1

Multiple choice questions (No. 31 to 130). Choose the correct answer (a, b, c or d) and enter your choice in the circle (by shading with a pencil) on the OMR answer sheet as per the instructions given on the answer sheet.

a) b) c) d)
39. a) b) c) d)

20.5 - 24.4 mm 25.0 27.0 mm 27.5 32.0 rr)m 32.5 mm and above

31. The rat6 of the visible light reflected to the amount of incident upon is termed as a) Reflection b) Refraction c) Albedo d) Scattering 32. The inverse nitrogen yield concept was given by a) Mitscheriich b) Gregory c) Radford d) Wilcox

To which family does cumin belong? Compositae Tiliaceae Umbelliferae Cruciferae

40. The concentration of HPOZ- and H2PO; .ions in solution is equal at a pH of a) 5.6 b) 6.5 c) 7.2 d) 8.2 41. a) b) c) d) Which form of ion uptake requires energy? Active transport Passive transport Diffusion Mass flow

Subject :PhD Agronomy 2011

42. if two solutions having pH value of 5.0 and 6.0 are mixed in equal quantities, what shall be the pH of resultant mixture? a) >5.5 b) 5.5

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50. Which species of Rhizoblum is suitable for fenugreek? a) meliloti b) leguminosarum C) ~haseoli 51. Which micronutrient is usually deficient in calcareous soils? a) Mn b) Mo C Cu ) d) B

43. Which of the following diseases of cole crops is directly associated with lower pH of soils? a) Ciubroot b) Damping off c) Mlldew d) Wilt 44. Which of the following soils will have normal physical condition even at higher ESP (>I 5%)?. a) Saline b) Sodic c) Acid d) Saline-sodic 45. In the process of nitrogen mineralization, the first step is called a) lmmoblllsation b) Ammoniflcation c) Aminization d) Nitrification 46. Percent sulphur sulphate is a) 12

,$2.'~n have droplet size of producing mist ultra low volume s'prayer will
a) Upto 50 micron
b) 50-100 micron c) 101-200 micron d) 201-400 micron
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53. As per Beer-Lambert's law, the relationship between optical density (OD) and transmittance (%T) of a coloured solution is given by a) OD = log T b) OD = log 2.0 T c) OD = 2.0 -log T d) OD = log T 2.0

content in ammonium

47. Whose deficiency weakens plasmalemma and loss of cell contents? a) s b) P C) K d) Ca 48. Which of the following is not a chelate compound? a) EDTA b) CDMA c) DTPA * ' d) EDDHA " 49. a) b) c) d)

54. If dry weight of weeds from weedy check, hand weeded plots and Metsulfuron treated plots were 400 kg, 4 kg and 100 kglha, respectively. The weed control efficiency of Metsulfuronwill be I a) 60% b) 75% c) 85% d) 90% 55. a) b) cj d)

Water potential of pure water is Zero 1 bar 100 bar 10' bar

The crop highly sensitive to Mo deficiency Cauliflower Tomato Carrot Wheat

56. If bulk density and particle density of a soil is 1.5 and 3 0 glcc, what will be its percent porosity? a) 30 b) 40 c) 50 d) 60
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57. In universal soil loss equation, what does K refer to? a) Cropping management factor b) Slope gradient factor c) Soil erodibility factor d) Rainfall factor

Subject : PhD Agronomy 2011

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66. Availability of which of the following plant nutrients does not increase with decrease in soil pH? a) Cu b) Fe C) Zn d) Mo 67. a) b) c) d) Which of the following is Na liking crop? Chickpea Maize Soybean Sugarbeet
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58. Electrical conductivity equivalent to 1 dSlm means a solution of soluble salts with concentration a) 36 mgll b) 640 mgll c) 1 ppmll d) 1 Molll 59. Which fertilizer has lowest acidity? a) Ammonium chloride b) Ammonium sulphate c) Ammonium sulphate-nitrate d) Ammonium nitrate equivalent

60. The ratio between the water stored in root zone to the water delivered at the field is technically called a) Water distribution efficiency b) Water conveyance efficiency c) Water application efficiency d) Field irrigation eMciency 61. In which experimental design, there are three errors? a) RBD bj Split plot C) Strip plot d) None of the above 62. In the analysis of variance, the error degree of freedom must be at least a) 6

.,

68. Bacteria Throbacillus ihiooxidans is involved in a) Reduction of nitrogen to ammonia b) Phosphorus sofubilization c) Oxidation of S in soil d) Conversion of urea to ammonia 69. a) b) c) d) in cotton, Zn deficiency is known as White bud Little leaf Mottle leaf Fern leaf

70. Which is probably the most important growth limiting factor in acid soil with DH below 5.57 a) P deficiency b) Al toxicity c) Fe toxicity dl B deficiencv Jl. Consumptive use of water per kg of rice production approximately ranges between 1000-2000 litres 1500-3000 litres 3000-5000 litres 5000-7000 iitres

63. In which design, interaction of lwo factor has more precision than main effects? al RBD c i siripp~ot d) Latin square
\

a) b) c) d)

64. Which of the following is not a commonly used technique for controlling experimental error? , Duncan's multiple range test a) b) Blockii c) Proper %lottechnique d) Data analysis 65. Which of the following element is the part of urease enzyme? a) Al b) Co C) Ni d) Si

72.How much time a water flow of 10 litrelsecond will take to apply irrigation of 60 mm over an area of one hectare? ,\' a) 900 minutes b) 1000 minutes c) 1150 minutes d) 1200 minutes 73. Brown manuring is generally recommended . in which crop? a) Wheat b) Mustard C) Rice. d) Potato 74. Which of the following crops has the highest percentage of irrigated area? a) Rice b) Cotton c) Wheat d) Sugarcane

Subject : PhD - Agronomy 2011 75. Which of the following states1UTs has the highest use of NPK per hectare cropped area? a) Punjab b) Haryana c) Pondicherry d) Chandigarh 76. What will be ginning percentage of cotton variety producing seed cotton 30 quintal and cotton seed 20 quintallhectare area? a) 30.0% b) 33.3% .c) 68B0/0 d) 67.0%
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83. Activities of which hormone increases with moisture stress? a) Gibberellic acid b) indoleacetic acid c) Abscisjc acid d) Cytokinin 84. Which of the following diseases can be controlled by lowering the soil pH? a) Scab of potato b) Wilt of chickpea c) Root rot of barley d) Stalk rot in corn 85. The average annual rainfall of india

77. a) b) c) d)

The half life of 3 13.8 days 14.3 days 14.8 days 27.6 days

2 is ~

78. Tensiometer can effectively measure the soil moisture content upto a) 0.33 atm b) 0.85 atm C) 1.5 atm d) 5.0 atm ,7d The moiarity grade) is a) I O M b) 1 2 M c) 1 6 M d) 1 8 M concentrated

8 d Which of the following nutrients is involved in sugar and starch formation, lipid metabolism and N fixation? a) Nitrogen b) Phosphorus c) Potassium d) Sui~hur 'JS 335' is an high yielding variety of Soybean Sorghum Sunflower Safflower Hydrocyanic acid in sorghum is synthesized in Leaves Stem Root Flower premordia

80. Most suitable crop for relay cropping in fallow rice In central and eastern part of india is a) Linseed b) Wheat C) Pea d) Barley 81. Negative nutrient balance per annum in Indian soil Is approximately a) 4.0 miillon tonnes b) 10.0 million tonnes c) 13.0 million tonnes d) 15.0 millioq tonnes 82. Phalaris minor has develooed resistance against which herbicide? a) 2,4-D b) lsoproturon c) Suifosuifuron d) Oxadiazon

a) b) c) d)

89.Van Bemmel factor for computing soil organic matter from soil organic carbon is a) 6.250 b) 2.292 c) 1.724 d) 0.895

I 2 E%~~p
91.Which of the following nutrients responsible for pollen viability in wheat? a) Zinc b) Boron C) Fe d) Mn is

90. Carthamus tinctorius is a

Subject : PhD - Agronomy

- 2011

7 101. Highest of hydraulic conductivity is recorded in a) Clay loam soil ' b) Loam soil c) Silty clay loam soil d) Sandy loam soil 102. Soil-moisture characteristic curve depicts relationship between a) Soil moisture and tension b) Soil temperature and moisture c) Soil moisture and bulk density d) Soil texture and moisture 193. Norman E. Borlaug got Nobel Prize in the field of a) Agriculture b) Medicine \ 0 ) ' Peace d) Economics

92. P & K ions mainly move from soil to root of crops by a) Root interception b) Mass flow c) Diffusion d) Osmosis 93. a) b) c) d) To compare the two sample means we use X2test F-test t-test 2-test

94. The nutrient elements which are constituent of nitrogenase enzyme a) Fe + Co b) Fe + Mo c) Fe + Mn d) Fe +Mg 95. In total N determination of a soil sample by Kjeldahl method, salicylic acid is added before digestion to include a) NH4-N b) NOa-N c) Amide-N d) Protein-N

\,

104. Akiochi disease in paddy is caused by a) Reduction of suiphate to sulphide b) Oxidation of S to SO4 c) Transformation of H2Sinto SO2 d) Transformation of SO2into So4 105. Proteins content of milled rice is about a) 4-5% b) 6-7% C) 9-10% d) 12-13% 106. Study of agronomy dealing with the relationship of yield to the quantity of an addediavailable fertilizer element is called a) Soil fertility b) Agrobiology c) Agrostology d) Agroiogy 107. In how many classes did Krishnan and Singh (1972) divided the climate on the basis of moisture deficit index? a) 10 b) 8 c) 6 d) 4 108. The process of K fixation in the soil is a) Chemical b) Mechanical c) Biological d) Both chemical and biological 109. Which of the following i an essential s nutrient for higher plants? a) Co b) Si c) Na d) Ni

' g6:~he optimum stage of rice seedling for

a) ... b) c) d)

transplanting under irrigated condition during Kharif season is Two ieaf stage Four ieaf stage Six leaf stage Eight leaf stage

97.which group of microorganisms is most active at the terminal stage of composting? a) Actinomycetes kb). Bacteria c) Fungi d) Protozoa 98. Which one of t h e following is not a component of the moisture potential in soil? a) Turgor potential b) Osmotic potential C) Gravity potential d) Matric potential
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99. The important soil organism responsible for the conversion of NH; to N0;is a) Nitrosomonas b) Nitrobacter c) Azotobacter d) Azospirilium

,~. 100. Which of the following exhibit increase in concentrationwith advancement in crop age? a) Fe b) Mn c) Zn d) c u

Subject :PhD- Agronomy 2011

110. In India, the annual production of chillies is of the order of a) 0.2 million tonnes b) 1.2 million tonnes c) 2.4 million tonnes d) 3.6 million tonnes 111. The average efficiency of irrigation projects in India is a) 25-30% b) 40-50% C) 50-60% d) 80% and above 112. Who is known as father of agricultural chemistry? a) Jethro Tull b) Justus Von Liebig c) J.H. Gilbert d) J.B. Lawes 113. In which crop, response to Si application has been established widely? a) Onion b) Rice c) Potato d) Chickpea 114. Application of 2-4 D causes malformation in which variety of wheat? a) HD2009 b) HD2285 c) HD2687 d) WH 542 115. Maize grain is mainly used for a) Poultry feed b) Cattle feed c) Food for human consumption d) Starch making 116. In V-notch, which notation is used for measuring the water flow? .. . ... a) q=0.0138 H'.', b) q-0.0148 H'.' c) q=0.0184 H ~ . ~ d) q=0.0184 LH'.' 119. Legume crop which responds to application as much' as cereal crops a) Fieldpea b) Guar c) Frenchbean d) Cowpea

8
N

120. The first micronutrient reported deficient in Indian soil is a) Zn b) Mn c) Fe d) Mo

I

121. One micron is equal to a) 1w5m

122. At the end point of titration for determination of organic carbon, colour changes from a) Blue to red b) Red to green c) Green to blue d) Blue to green 123. Which of the following weed is used as vegetable (Sag)? a) Chenopodium murale b) Convolvuius arvensis c) Avena sativa d) Chenopodium album 124. The value located in the middle of a series when observations are arranged in order of magnitude a) Mean b) Mode c) Median d) Standard deviation 125. Boehmenia nivea is botanical name of a) Mesta b) Indigo c) Ramie d) Buckwheat 126. Pigeonpea is categorized as a) Self pollinated b) Cross pollinated c) Often self pollinated d) Often cross pollinated 127. Optimum seed rate of sugarbeet (Baeta vulgaris L.) is a) 8-10 kglha' b) 18-20 kglha c) 28-30 kglha d) 38-40 kglha

LA^. What is the chemical formula of thiourea?

a) b) d)
C)

NH2-CS-NH2 NH2-CHz-CSNH2 NH2-CO-NH-CO-NHz NHz-CH2-CS-CH3

118. STP techniques of planting is used in a) Sweet potato b) Potato c) Sugarcane d) Jute

Subject : PhD - Agronomy 2011 128. The empirical formula to compute PET, e=1.6 (10 VI)' was proposed by a) Penman (1 948) b) Thornthwalt (1948) c) Doorenbos and Pruitt (1975) d) Christiansen (1968) 129. If L, and L2 are leaf area and WI and W2 are dry weight of leaves at time t~ and t2, respectively, then [(W2-w1)( ~ o ~ L ~ - I o ~ L ~ ) I (LZ-L,)I is I [(t2-tr) a) RGR -~, b) NAR cj LAR d) CGR 130. As per land capability classification, the claases of soils suitable for cultivation of crops are a) Classes I-IV b) Classes V-VI c) Classes VII-VIII d) All of the above 134. i) Cu. ii) Al ~ii) Fe iv) Na v) Mn ?\tee1 industry ii) K ili) Mg iv) B v) RGR 136. I) Quack grass ii) Black night shade iii) Field bind weed' iv) Canada thistle v) Slender pig weed 137. i) Phyllody ii) Ergot iil) Head rot iv) Brown plant hopper v) Pyrilla

a) Greyspek b)' Alkanity c) Bronzing d) Tea e) Dieback a) b) c) d) e) Carnallite. Fisher 1921 Kieserite Solubor Basic slag Solanum nigrum Convolvulus arvensis Cirsium arvensls Amaranthus viridis Agropyron repens a) Suggary disease b) Rice c) Sesame d) Sugarcane ~ e Sunflower )

a) b) c) d) e)

Matching type questions (No. 131 to 140); all questions carry equal marks. Choose the correct answer (a, b, c, d or e) for each sub-question (i, ii, iii, iv and v) and enter your choice In the circle (by shading with a pencil) on the OMR answer sheet as per the instructions given on the answer sheet.

131.
!@jj

i) Egg 11) Fish iil) Foodgrain iv) Mllk v) Oilseeds 132. Seed i) Sesame li) Niger iii) Castor iv) Soybean, v) Safflowbr

Increment in production since 1950-51 a) 4 5 times b) 6 times c) 9 times .d) 27 times e) 55 times Oil content (Oh) 18 36 30 40 50

138. Match the following researchers with their contributions I) Livingstone and a) Quantitative agrobiology -. ' ~hreie(1921) b) Theory of physiological ii) Wilcox (1 937) limits C) Theory of optima and iii) Rubel (1935) limiting factor iv) Shelford (1913) . d) Theory of factor replaceability v) Blackman (1905) 'e) General law of tolerance 139. Match the following usages i) Activated charcoal ii) NA iit) Maleic hydrazide iv) Activator v) Teepol 140. i) Sunflower ii) Buckwheat iii) Triticale iv) Ricebean v) Barley a) b) c) d) e) compounds with their a) b) c) d) e) Herbicide antidote Dormancy Adsorbent Wetting agent Randox-T

a) bj c) d) e)

133. i) Karl Fisher reagent ii) EBT indicator iii) Ascorbic acid iv) Alkaline permanganate v) Grigg's reagent

a) P determination b) Available N estimation C) Available Mo estimation d) Moisture determination in urea e) Ca estimation

Man made cereal Long day plant Day neutral plant Pseudo-cereal Epigeal germination

Subject : PhD -Agronomy

- 2011

Short questions (No. 141 to 146); each question carries FIVE marks. Write answers, including computation Imathematical calcuiations if any, in the space provided for each questlon on t h e question paper Itself.
12 ~l 141. A soil analysls revealed that the saturation extract contained 20 meq ~a'~11. meq ~ g + andl 100 meq Na'll. The E , = 2.2 dSlm, soil pH 8.6 and CEC-20 meqI100 g, identify the pcWsoil. C

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142. Gross command area of an irrigation canal is 60,000 ha, cultivable irrigated area is 60%. Intensity of irrigation is 30 and 50 percent for Kharifand Rabi, respectively. What is the discharge required at the head of canal, if the duty at its head is 600 and 1000 ha cumec-' for Kharif and Rabi, respectively?

Subject : PhD - Agronomy - 2011

143. Why urea is the Pest source of N for crops in general?

144. What are the problems associated with upland direct seeded rice cultivation?

Subject :PhD Agronomy 2011

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145. What is factor productivity? Briefly explain, why there has been decline in it?%
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146. How agriculture is contributing to the phenomenon of climate change? Briefly suggest mitigation strategies to contain it.